Stark, which has a deal to supply "kamikaze" drones to the German military, raised €500M from Founders Fund, Sequoia, others; it faced criticism over Thiel ties (Financial Times)
THE SO WHAT
Loitering munitions with major VC backing underline how software-heavy weapons systems are becoming a core startup arena in Europe. Dual-use founders should expect more political scrutiny on cap tables and customers—and build compliance, narrative, and export controls in from day one.
READ THE SOURCE
MORE FROM THE WIRE
Startups & VenturePermira-Backed Womenswear Retailer Reformation Files for US IPO
Reformation filing for a US IPO with a sustainability narrative shows public markets will still underwrite focused, brand-led retail if unit economics are there. For consumer operators, it’s a reminder that differentiated product plus disciplined ops can clear the bar even in a choppy macro.
Startups & VentureOpenAI Leans Toward Waiting Until 2027 for IPO: NY Times
Pushing an IPO out to 2027 signals OpenAI is prioritizing strategic flexibility and regulatory navigation over near-term liquidity. For enterprises, that likely means continued aggressive reinvestment in models and infra — budget for rapid capability shifts rather than a slower, post-IPO optimization phase.
Startups & VentureAmperity hit with layoffs as AI changes the shape of the customer data startup and how it operates
Amperity cutting staff while citing AI reshaping its customer data business is a concrete example of AI compressing headcount in data-heavy SaaS. If your product overlaps with what foundation models can now do natively — unifying, segmenting, and activating data — you need a sharper wedge than “CDP with AI.”
Startups & VentureSpaceX Sale Shows Funding Across Equity, Credit: Hjort
SpaceX tapping both equity and credit markets at scale shows late-stage frontier tech is now treated as core infrastructure, not a speculative bet. For founders in capital-intensive domains, mixed-structure financing is becoming the norm, not the exception.